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IProve®-Mobile Assisted Authentication

Both
small and large companies deal with the challenge of issuing and maintaining
employee identity credentials for physical access to company facilities. In
addition, some companies use these same identity credentials for physical
access and web-based authentication. Companies incur significant costs to
maintain the infrastructure that supports employee identity credentials and to
equip facilities, computers and employees with the readers that enable their
use.

Mobile
Assisted Authentication (MAA) devices represent both a better way
for companies to manage physical access and a cost-effective and
convenient way
for employees to access company information (network or enterprise
access). In addition, since virtually all phones are capable of
supporting SMS, the
MAA solution is the most generally available to all organizations and is
relatively easy to use.

Using the Phone as
an Out-of-Band Authentication Device

Using the phone as an out-of-band authentication device requires that an
employee’s mobile phone be correlated with the person’s identity. The phone can
then be used as an additional factor to authenticate the employee. For example,
when an employee tries to gain access to the company network a short message
service (SMS) message containing access information (e.g. One Time Password) is
sent to the phone, which the employee enters on the Web site to gain access to
the network. This approach can have several benefits. For example, using the phone as
an out-of-band authentication device provides an additional (something you
have) authentication factor and also protects against certain forms of
attack—specifically phishing attacks to
capture identity credentials for fraudulent use. To achieve access, someone
must now intercept the user’s ID–password as well as the access information
sent to the mobile device.

IProve® - Mobile Assisted Authentication

IProve® - Mobile Assisted Authentication (MAA) combines the security of two-factor authentication with the convenience and simplicity of mobile devices and SMS messages. MAA can present a number of significant benefits:

Improved security. IProve® - Mobile Assisted Authentication delivers two-factor authentication that offers a number of security advantages over basic user name and password access, helping provide a strong layer of protection for user access and identities.

Reduced security costs. Compared to hardware-based token approaches, IProve® - Mobile Assisted Authentication can provide both significant upfront savings—by reducing token purchases and distribution costs—and over the long term by streamlining administration and eliminating the cost of replacing lost tokens.

Boost deployment opportunities. By eliminating tokens from the equation and relying instead on ubiquitous mobile devices, IProve® - Mobile Assisted Authentication brings two-factor authentication to a range of arenas where it would have been previously impractical— online banking, controlled access to valuable IP, e-learning education portals, authenticating voice- based system access, healthcare sites.

IProve® - Mobile Assisted Authentication offers numerous advantages and benefits. In addition, its lower costs and ubiquity make it an ideal complement to an organization’s existing security and authentication mechanisms. For many organizations, MAA can present a host of benefits to organizations looking to improve security while maximizing the productivity of end users and administrative staff.